Cross-head.



PATENTED SEPT. 4, 1906.

J. B. KINGAN.

CROSS HEAD. APPLICATION FILED un. s. 1905.

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IN c @JJ 1m: Hemus rsrrns on.. lusmmrrun. n. cV

v No. 830,080.

UNiTnD STATES iearnia'r onirica..

JAMES B. KINGAN, OF SCHENEOTADY, NEW YORK.

CROSS-H EAD.

To all whom, it may concern.:

Be it known that I, JAMES B KINGAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Schenectady, in the county of Schenectady and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cross- Heads 'and Piston-Rods of Reciprocating Engines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to cross-heads and piston-rods combined of reciprocating engines, and especially to those employed in locomotive-engines.

The object of this invention is to provide a piston-rod and cross-head so combined in a single piece as to be durable and less expensive to repair and which will avoid the inconvenience incident to breakage at the keyway of the piston-rod or the screw-'threaded portion of same sometimes employed for securing the piston-rod to the cross-head.

It consists in a piston-rod provided at its rear end with a cross-head made integral with the same by forging or welding and with provision for receiving upper and lower wearing-shoes for coaction. with guide-rods for guiding the movements of the cross-head and piston-rod. The cross-head when complete may be of the same general form and 4dimensions as cross-heads now in general use and has the advantage and features of great permanency, while the line of union ofthe cross-head with the piston-rod is strength ycned by an annular cove to obviate a breakage of the piston-rod outside of the crosshead, which is now a common occurrence.

Other purposes and advantages of this inventio'n will be clearly shown and set forth in the specification, when taken in connection with the accompanying sheet of drawings, in which.-

Figure 1 is a plan View of the piston-rod and cross-head complete and connected with the piston-head in the manner usually practiced bythe trade. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a view of the rear end of the cross-head. Fig. 4 lis a side elevation of the cross-head prior to being furnished with the wearing-shoes and shows it and the piston-rod to be made integral. Fig. 5 is a plan view of the same. Fig. 6 is a front end view of the cross-head. Fig- 7 is a rear end Fig. 8 is an end view of Fi 9 Fig. 10 is a p an Fig. 11 is a side elevation view of the same. one of the cross-head wearing-shoes. is a side view of the same. view of the same.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 5, 1905. Serial No. 254,057.

Patented Sept. 4, 1906.

showing a modification of the cross-head and shows one of the shoes applied. Fig. 12 is a side view of a wearing-shoe, illustrating another method of constructing the same. Fig. 13 is a section of a wearing-shoe taken at line 1 in Fig. 1 2. Fig. 14 is a section of a wearing-shoe taken at line 2 in Fig. 11.

The same letters of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In the drawings, A, Figs. 1, 2, 4, 5, and 11, is a single piece of metal consisting of pistonrod A and cross-head B, made integral by forging or welding. At the line of union of the piston-rod and cross-head is provided a circular cove a. (shown in the same figures) for strengthening the metal at this point and also avoiding the occurrence of a shoulder, where breakage usually occurs. The crosshead B is made with solid portion C and has made integral with said solid portion the cheeks or jaws C, which are provided with the wrist-pin opening. O2. Between these jaws is the opening D, Figs. 1, 5, and 7, in which works-the end of a connecting-rod, (not shown,) which is connected in the usual manner to a wrist-pin (not shown) inserted in wrist-pin opening c2. The forward ends of jaws c' act as flanges for holding the wearing-shoe E and are provided with bolt-holes e, as shown inl Fig. 4, and indicated by dotted lines in Figs. 5, 6, and 7, which coincide with other bolt-holesf, made in the forward end of wearing-shoe The wearing-shoe, Figs. 8, 9, and 10, referably made of steel, consists of the ody ortion E, carrying on one of :its surfaces the lbngitudinal flanges e2 e2, producing the way e', in which the usual piston-guiderods (not shown) Work, and on the op osite surface is the tongue F. This tongue is provided at its forward end with bolt-holes f f, which when the shoe is in place, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, coincide with the bolt-holes e in the cross-head B and form a continuous passage for the bolts G for securely clamping and securing said wearing-shoes to the cross-head, the tongue F of the wearing-shoe acting as a steadiment tosame between the jaws c of the cross-head B. The bolts G are provided with countersunk heads at the inside of the cross-head, as is usual with the trade, and are threaded at their outer ends and provide with nuts, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 11.

head and its shoe.

structed similar to that shown in Figs. 4 and The wearing-shoe E',

5, excepting that the solid portion c extends from top to bottom of the same, and there is provided in its forward end the recesses H for engagement with the wearing shoe. Bolt-holes h are also provided, as shown. Figs. 11 and 14, is of the same general form as shown in Figs. 8, 9,

and 10, excepting that the tongue F is made of reduced depth and the sides at their forward ends have flanges' h', which exactly fit the recesses H of the cross-head, and they are provided with bolt-holes corresponding with the bolt-holes in the cross-head when the shoe E is in place, which receive bolts made as before described and are clamped and secured by means 'of the nuts on Vthe threaded end of said bolts.

Figs. 12 and 13 illustrate another method of constructing the wearing-shoe. In this shoe the body E2 may be made of cast-iron, bronze, or other suitable material or alloy and is provided with the usual guide-flanges e2 and the shallow tongue F. The sides J, provided with flanges y' for engagement with the recesses H, Fig. 1 1, are rabbeted into the body F2 of the wearing-shoe and are secured to the same by means of transverse bolts G', as shown in Figs. 12 and 13. Bolt-holes are also provided in flanges j, which will coincide with boltfholes h, Fig. 11, when the wearingshoe is in place on cross-head, and the two are secured together by the bolts G, made as described and in the manner above set forth.

It is to be understood that while the cylinder in which the piston above referred to works and also Athe stuffing-box, with its glands and piston-rod packing used in this class of engines, are not shown,-it is necessary to provide a proper stuffing-box and also means for the passage of the cross-head through the cylinder from front to rear. It is also evident that this could not be done and still use the stuffing-box with the rear cylinder-head constructed in the usual way. but I attain my object by making a circular opening in the rear cylinder-head of a diameter equal to the diagonal diameter of the cross-head B, which is indicated by broken line Xin Fig. 6, and I provide a peculiar and novel construction of stuffing-box which is subject-matter for another application for patent and cannot be shown in this application.

The manner in which this cross-head made lntegral with the piston-rod is applied for proper operation in a reciprocating engine is as follows: The piston-head P, which is con- Y structed as usual and provided with packingrings P, is secured to the forward end of the piston-rod in the preferred manner practiced by the trade. The forward cylinder-head being removed, the cross-head is inserted and passed throu h the cylinder rearward. Then it is passed t ough the opening in the back saos cylinder-head (indicated by broken line X, Fi 6) and into its place between the guidero s, when the upper and lower wearing-shoe E will be applied and the bolts G inserted and passed through both wearing-shoe and crosshead and secured by the nuts g, all as above described. Then thestufling-box, with its piston-rod packing, which will be of a construction suitable for its purpose and applicable to this invention, will be placed in position and secured to the rear cylinder-head. A chainfer Y at each of the corners of the cross-head B, Figs. 4 and 6, may be used to advantage sometimes, as it will allow the opening Xin the back cylinder-head to be made smaller and still pass the cross-head through same.

The advantages I claim for my invention over the old method of constructing crossheads, especially for locomotive-engines, may be understood, as it is well known that the different kinds of piston-rods now in common use on locomotives have caused great trouble due to breakage at the keyway in the crosshead fit, where keys are used, or in the threaded part of the piston-rod where the same is secured to the cross-head by means of nuts. This trouble is not due to the stress or strain exerted by the steam working against the piston, but to the great strain exerted on the piston-rod by driving the taper-key in the one case or by drawing the nuts up sufficiently tight to insure the rod against working loose in the cross-head in the other case. In either case the rod must be drawn into the taper fit of the cross-head to a tension exceeding the force exerted by the steam-pressure against the piston, which tension is more than the metal of which the piston-rod is made will stand7 hence the breakage, resulting in engine failures', delays, and in many cases excessive damage to the other parts of the engine.

Having described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

A device constructed for service in a reciprocating engine, the combinationin a singlel piece, of a piston-rod portion and a crosshead portion made integral by forging or welding, the cross-head of a piece coniprisi ng the solid portion c, opening D between the jaws for receiving the end of a connecting-rod, a portion of which jaws serve as flanges to receive wearing-shoes, and a circular cove aat the line of union of the piston-rod with the said cross-head for strengthening the metal of said piece at said line of union, the rear end portion of the piston-rod being lnade to secure the said piece to the piston.

JAMES B. KINGAN.

IOS 

